Picking This Week's Top 25 Games

The quick and dirty predictions for this week's Top 25 action:

#1 Texas vs #11 Missouri, 8:00 PM Eastern

Colt McCoy leapfrogged into the Heisman race as the Longhorns outplayed Oklahoma. This week they face an embattled Tigers team who thinks they were wronged by an interception that wasn’t in the waning moments of their loss to Oklahoma State.  Chase Daniel and crew will put up a great fight but McCoy will show why he should get the prize in New York and possibly a trip to Miami on January 8^th.

Texas 38-31

#2 Alabama vs Mississippi, 3:30 Eastern

The Crimson Tide are coming off a bye week in which three of the other Top 5 lost and look to avoid a similar fate as they host The Rebels that knocked off then #4 Florida three weeks ago. Nick Saban’s squad hopes to keep their undefeated record and control of the SEC West while Houston Nutt tries to prove he was a good hire.

Alabama 34-10

#3 Penn State vs Michigan, 4:30 Eastern

The Nittany Lions are enjoying their greatest start in recent history and look to prove their Big 10 superiority as they host a faltering Michigan squad struggling to adapt to Rich Rodriguez’s spread offense and coming off one of their most embarrassing losses ever.  All those that thought JoePa was too old to coach should start pulling their foot out of their mouth.

Penn State 35-7

#4 Oklahoma vs #16 Kansas,  3:30 Eastern

Bob Stoops will look to rebuild his Sooners’ confidence after a disappointing loss to Texas as Kansas faces its first true test of the season.  A win by the Jayhawks would reignite National Title talk and reassure football fans that the SEC has some competition while an Oklahoma victory would keep them in the hunt for a conference title bid and a craving for oranges.

Oklahoma 42-31

#5 Florida – bye.  Next vs Kentucky Oct 25.

#6 USC at Washington State, 3:30 Eastern

USC QB Mark Sanchez looks to silence critics after his unHeisman-like performance last week against Arizona State in a game which he threw three interceptions and fumbled twice.  Wazzu hopes to turn around their 1-6 season with a shocking performance like Oregon State’s a few weeks back.  Don’t expect to catch USC looking ahead this week.

USC 49-3

#7 Texas Tech at Texas A&M, 12:00 PM Eastern

The Red Raiders had a shaky performance against a transitioning Nebraska squad while the Aggies just try to win a game for a change and salvage something from this year’s dying crop.  Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree should run all over the struggling Aggiesand boost their stats in hopes of an invite to New York come December.

Texas Tech 56-6

#8 Oklahoma State vs Baylor, 3:00 PM Eastern

Gundy’s Cowboys are coming off an impressive win over Missouri and should be careful not to look past a mediocre Baylor squad in anticipation of their matchup with Texas next week.  The Baylor Bears are just looking for some consistency in a season that is missing just that.

Oklahoma State 28-10

#9 BYU at TCU, Thursday 8:00 PM Eastern

Bronco Mendenhall takes his team down to visit Texas Christian in the Holy War with a short week to work with as BYU never practices on Sundays.  The Horned Frogs boast the nation’s #1 Defense and would love nothing more to augment their national attention by knocking off a Top 10 team and solidify themselves atop the Conference Standings.

BYU 21-17

#10 Georgia vs #22 Vanderbilt, 12:30 PM Eastern

The media’s Cinderella Story of the Year is still wondering what happened in their loss to the SEC’s doormat in Mississippi State while the Bulldogs hope to get their name back in water cooler talks before the first BCS Poll comes out Sunday by tacking on another “W” versus a ranked team.

Georgia 28-24

#12 Ohio State at #20 Michigan State, 3:30 Eastern

Attention all upset lovers, the Buckeyes should be on high alert this weekend when they head to the Spartan’s homeland to face Javon Ringer and the prolific offense he works for.  Kurt Dantonio can put East Lansing in the Big Ten title talks with a win over The Ohio State and Beanie Wells can help reestablish his team on a national level by running through the 68^th ranked defense in the nation.

Michigan State 31-20

#13 LSU at South Carolina, 8:00 PM Eastern

Steve Spurrier would love nothing more than to continue this 4-game win streak and deliver another blow to the already-deflated Tigers while Les Miles has to go into South Carolina to get the nasty taste of embarrassment off his tongue.  The Gamecocks won’t deliver a performance like the Gators did but should put up a good fight along the way.

LSU 28-17

#14 Utah vs Colorado State, 2:00 PM Eastern

Brian Johnson and company are still wondering when they are going to be considered the elite of the Mountain West above their in-state rivals but will have to wait until Nov 22^ndto officially prove that.  Until then the Utes should be careful not to overlook the Rams who came oh so close to picking off TCU this past weekend.  Colorado State is no longer an easy win in the MWC.

Utah 38-14

#15 Boise State vs Hawaii, Friday 8:00 PM Eastern

The blue turf in Idaho will be way too much for the Warriors to handle on Friday as the Broncos continue their dominance of the WAC and attempt to improve their standings in the national polls.  When Hawaii lost Colt Brennan, its offense went with him and so did anyone’s interest in what happens in the middle of the Pacific.

Boise State 45-10

#17 Virginia Tech at Boston College, 8:00 PM Eastern

Frank Beamer and his Hokies spent the first half of the season getting his team on track after losing to East Carolina, who has since faded to .500 while Boston College has receive little to no recognition for getting to 4-1.  One of these teams will take the win and turn it into a second-half surge and make some much-needed noise for the ACC.

Virginia Tech 24-21

#18 North Carolina at Virginia, 3:30 PM Eastern

With the loss of Brandon Tate, the Tar Heels will struggle against an emerging Virginia squad who seems a game or two away from regaining their swagger.  Butch Davis may finally get his shot at showing the last few years of struggling were well worth the wait. 

North Carolina 24-20

#19 South Florida vs Syracuse, 12:00 PM Eastern

The Orange won’t have an easy game until a few weeks against Rutgers.  They should just do their best to matchup with South Florida and get out of Tampa without having to tuck their tail between their legs.  The Bulls will be looking to take out some of their frustration from their loss to Pittsburgh and Syracuse is the perfect target.

South Florida 42-3

#21 Wake Forest at Maryland, 12:00 PM Eastern

Maryland is coming off a 31-0 loss at the hands of Virginia and looks to expose the Demon Deacons’ weak offense and prove the ACC Championship is still a viable option. As Jim Grobe tries to tell the media that he’s not interested in the Clemson job, his squad must improve after a second-rate showing against Clemson last Thursday.

Maryland 20-17

#23 Pittsburgh at Navy, 3:30 Eastern

The Panthers have been waiting all year to avenge last season’s drubbing by the Midshipmen and Navy hopes to avoid a home loss while showing why they are among the nation’s Top 5 rushing threats.  Pittsburgh would love nothing more than to up the ante this season and embarrass the Middies in dominating fashion.

Pitt 35-28

#24 Ball State – bye.  Next vs Eastern Michigan Oct 25^th.

#25 California at Arizona, 10:00 PM Eastern

The Golden Bears are unblemished in conference play and hope to stay that way after a trip to the desert this weekend.  Arizona can stay in the hunt for a conference title with a win against Cal but will need to flex the muscle of its 9^th ranked defense and assure their fans the Stanford loss was an anomaly.

California 28-27